Lantern



Jan. 15, 1929.

B. I. DOWNING LANTERN Filed Oct. 11, 1927 IN VEN TOR. 592214. flaw/W e Co ATTORNEY Patented Jan. 15, 1929.

UNITED STATES BARRY I. IDOWINING, OF PITTSBURG, CALIFORNIA.

LANTERN.

Application filed ctober 11, 1927. Serial No. 225,454.

The invention. forming the subject matter of this application relates to safety lanterns of the type in which lamp always assumes an upright position, regardless of the position of the lantern.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a safety lantern to be used on construction work or the like as a signal, in which lantern the lamp is mounted upon a weighted ring in such a manner as to keep the light or the lamp in an upright position regardless of the position of the lantern.

Another object of the invention is to provide a lantern in which an oil lamp is caused to rotate in such a manner as to obviate any danger of the spilling of the oil therefrom in any position of the lantern support or lantern housing.

A further object of this invention is to provide a safety lantern in which the lamp is supported in such a way that the weight of the lamp turns the same in upright position and in which a weighted ring is adapted to support the lamp so as to turn the pivot of said lamp in parallelism with the direction of the tilting of the lantern housing.

\Vith the above and other objects in view, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention hereinafter disclosed may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention. Tl e essential features of the invention involved in the carryingout of the objects indicated are fully illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a sectional view of the safety lantern;

Figurefl is a sectional view taken along the line 2 of Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a fragmentary detail of the safety lantern base locking means.

The safety lanterns in use at present on the highways or on construction work are very frequently disturbed in their position by passing vehicles or for some other reason. There are some safety lanterns on the marlret in which the lamp may be rotated in a direction, thereby preventing the spilling of the oil and holding the lantern in an upright position when the lantern is tilted at right angles to the supporting plane of the the lamp will cause theoil to leak and to drown out the light. In my lantern, the lamp or the light is held in a true perpendicular position regardless of the angle and direction of the lantern tilting.

In carrying out my invention, I provide a housing denoted by the numeral 1. The housing 1 is preferably dome-like in shape and has apertures 2 at the top thereof for the egress of gases produced by a burning lamp 3 inside of the dome-like housing 1. lVindows 41 covered by colored (preferably red) glass care provided for permitting the light rays of the lamp 3 to be visible outside of the dome-like housing 1. i

A base 6 is supported at the bottom of the dome-like housing 1 on lugs 7 Openings 8 are cut into the periphery of the base plate 6. Said openings are so arranged that the base 6 may be readily detached and removed from the housing 1 by aligning the openings 8 with the lugs 7, thereby permitting the passing of said base over the lug 7. It is apparent that after the base 6 is placed into the bottom ofthe dome-like housing 1,

the wholebase may be turned so as to bring theo enings 8 out of alignment with the lugs thus supporting said base on said lugs. y

An annular flange 9 extends upwardly from the base 6, and it is sufficiently deep to receive therein the lamp 3. Guides 10 are oppositely disposed on the free end of the annular flange 9. A ring 11 is slidable in saidguides 10. A weight 12 is disposed on one side of the ring 11 as it is clearly shown 1n F igure 2. The weight is cut in as at 13 adjacent to the ring 11 in order to permit the same to pass over the guides 10. The extent of the cutout portion 13 is shown in dotted lines in Figure 2.. Bearings 14 extend upwardly and oppositely from the inside periphery of the ring 11. The bearings are made of a spring clip in order to facilitate the ready removal of the lamp from the supporting means. Pivots 15 extend from the lamp 3 and are rotatably secured in the spring clip bearings 14. As it is clearly shown in Figure 1, the pivots 15 are so disposed on the lampthat the oil container of said lamp falls below the supporting line, thereby counterbalancing the same.

The functions of. the supporting means arereadily understood from the aforesaid description. The dome-shaped housing 1 is made narrower on the top than on the bottom thereof, so as tOmtke it more difiicult to be thrown out of the upright posit-ion by the wind or by any other temporary force. The center of the gravity of the lamp 3 is below the pivots 15. Thus, the lamp is always turned so that the center of gravity thereof takes up the position below the pivots15, thereby holding the lamp in upright position. In the event the safety lantern is tilted in a direction parallel with the axis of the pivot 15, the weight 12 tends to assuine the lowest possible position, thus forcing the ring 11. to slide in the guides and rotate around the center, thereby bringing the pivot in such a position as to permit the rotation of the lamp 3 therein by the counterbalance thereof. Thus the bearings 14 are alwaysbroughtinto a position in which the axis of the pivot 15 is at rightangles' to the direction of the tilting of, the

safety lantern, regardless in which direction the lantern is tilted.

A hook 16is secured to thetop oi? the domedike housing 1. A chain or any other support 17 is secured therein by which hooker chain 17 the lantern is suspended'in any desirable position.

ll; will be recognized'that a particularly simpledeiuce is. provided to holdthe lamp I always in an upright position and which device coinbines light weight and sensitivity of movementwith a ruggedness of construc tion and positiveness of operation, especially adapting the safety lantern for his use. The device requiresno careful setting .up, and

lends'itselt to effective"application by the labor ordinarily available.

Havingthus described my invention, what l now claim as'novel and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A safetylantern comprising a housing, a ring, means to slidably support the periphery of said ring, a weight eccentricall disposed on said ring for rotating the same,

and a lamp pivoted on said ring so as to be held in an upright position.

' 2. A safety lantern con'iprisinga housing, a r1ng,bracl ts on said housing for slidably supporting the periphery of said ring, a

and slidably supporting said lamp so weight i-iccentrically disposed on said ring,

and av lamp pivoted 011 said ring so as to be held in an upright position.

3. A safety lantern comprising a housing, a removable bottom in the housing, an anrrular flange extending from said bottom, a

guides on said flange tor slidably supporting said ringpa weight eccentric-ally disposed on said ring, and a lamp pivoted on said ring so as to be held in an upright rin , position.

l. A'salety lantern comprising a dome like housing, having windows thereon,a base guides, a weightdisposed. on one side (it the ring, hearings on the inside periphery ot said ring, and a lainppivotally supported in said bearings.

6. A satety'lantern comprising a dome shaped housing, said housing being narrower atithe top 'thanaa-t thebotto1n the'eot, a lamp iuthe housing, means for rotatably to hold the same in an upright position.

7. A safety lanterncoinprising a supporting? member, having guides therein; an orcentrically Weighted annular element supported. inthe guides and being rotatable therein in the planeof the guides by the action ofthe eccentric weight, thereof; and a lighting elementplvotaliy sup ne-tied on said weighted .eleinent, t-hecenter of gravity of said lighting element being below the pivotal point thereof; said lighting clement being rotatable "in said WGlglfltQtl element around an axis ofrotation at right angles to the axis of rotation of said weighted element.

ln testimony whereofl iiiiix in signature.

BARR-Y i. no'wiuuo. 

